14 Ocak 2013 Pazartesi

California State Bird

California State Bird

Overview

The California quail, also known as the valley quail, became the official state bird in 1931. A widely distributed and prized game bird, it is known for its hardiness and adaptability. Plump, gray-colored, and smaller than a pigeon, the California quail sports a downward curving black plume on top of its head and black bib with white stripe under the beak. Flocks number from a few to 60 or more birds in the fall and winter months, but in the spring break into pairs. California quail nest in hollows scratched in the ground, and their eggs are creamy white and thickly spotted with golden brown. The species is highly sociable and often gathers in small flocks known as "coveys." One of their daily communal activities involves a dust bath, in which a group of quail burrow downward into the soil some 1-2 inches using their underbellies, then flap their wings and ruffle their feathers.

NESTING

SIMILAR SPECIES

Gambel's quail, mountain quail, gray partridge, chukar

TRIVIA

For California quail, it often "takes a village." Several broods of chicks may mingle after they hatch, with all the parents caring for the young. Raising chicks in this fashion tends to enable adults to live longer than those that don't.

California Quail sometimes practice "egg-dumping," when females lay eggs in nests that aren't their own. This can result in nests containing as many as 28 eggs.

The bird's head plume ("topknot") appears to be a single feather, but is actually comprised of six overlapping feathers.